2005 PONTIAC VIBE Complaints

2005 PONTIAC VIBE. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO SEVERAL VEHICLE REPAIRS AND REQUEST REPAIR *TGW THE CONSUMER STATED ON FEBRUARY 22, 2007 THE VEHICLE WAS FIRST DIAGNOSED WITH A FAILED POWER CONTROL MODULE. ON MARCH 9, 2007 A NEW PCM WAS INSTALLED UNDER WARRANTY. ON MARCH 23, 2007, THE OXYGEN SENSOR AND EXHAUST WERE REPLACED. ON OCTOBER 22, 2009 THE PCM FAILED AGAIN AND THE COMPUTER WAS REFLASHED. IN SEPT. 2010 THE CONSUMER RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE REGARDING THE PCM. THE CONSUMER FAXED OVER ALL THE NECESSARY PAPERWORK FOR REIMBURSEMENT. HOWEVER, THE CONSUMER RECEIVED A LETTER FROM GM STATING THEY HAD NOT RECEIVED ALL OF THE REQUIRED DOCUMENTATION TO PROCESS HIS REIMBURSEMENT. *JB

THE 5-SPEED MANUAL TRANSMISSION FAILED AT APPROXIMATELY 103000 MILES. LIKELY CAUSE WAS FAILURE OF AN OUTPUT SHAFT BEARING. SYMPTOMS OF FAILURE BEGAN AT APPROXIMATELY 90000 MILES, WHICH INCLUDED A VIBRATION IN THE SHIFTER HANDLE AND SLIGHT BUZZING NOISE. THE NOISE PROGRESSIVELY GOT LOUDER AND MORE FREQUENT UNTIL I HAD IT REPLACED AT 103000 MILES. HAD I NOT NOTICED THE CAUSE OF THE NOISE, THE BEARING MAY HAVE FAILED WHILE DRIVING, WHICH MAY HAVE CAUSED THE TRANSMISSION TO LOCK UP. *TR

BROUGHT MY 2005 VIBE INTO A GM DEALERSHIP DUE TO PAINT BUBBLES ON THE HOOD. LEARNED IT WAS FROM MY HOOD RUSTING FROM THE INSIDE OUT. THE METAL LATCH ON THE INSIDE OF THE HOOD IS RUSTING OUT AND GM REFUSES TO REPLACE IT. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE THAT HAS BEEN SEEN ON OTHER GM MODELS AND GM IS NOT WILLING TO PAY FOR THE FIX. THEY ARE REQUIRING THEIR CONSUMERS PAY HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS TO FIX A POTENTIALLY LARGE SAFETY ISSUE. THE RUST CAN GIVE WAY AT ANY TIME AND CAUSE THE HOOD TO RELEASE WHILE THE CAR IS DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD. *TT

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 PONTIAC VIBE. THE CONTACT NOTICED THAT THE BOLT THAT HELD THE SEAT BELT TOGETHER BECAME DETACHED AND THE SEAT BELT WAS UNABLE TO RETRACT. NEITHER THE DEALER NOR THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A PRIVATE MECHANIC AND THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE BOLT WAS STRIPPED AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 179,351 AND THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 172,566.

2005 PONTIAC VIBE. CONSUMER WRITES IN TO EXPRESS DISCONTENT WITH RECALL REPAIR *TGW THE CONSUMER STATED HER VEHICLE WAS RUNNING PERFECT BEFORE SHE TOOK IT TO THE DEALER FOR A RECALL. THE CONSUMER STATED WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS RETURNED TO HER, IT WAS IDLING BADLY. THE NEXT DAY, THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT START. THE CONSUMER RETURNED TO THE DEALER AND UPON DIAGNOSIS, IT WAS DETERMINED THE RECALL PART THAT WAS INSTALLED WAS FAULTY. *JB

IN NOVEMBER 2008 MY PONTIAC VIBE (AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION) STARTED TO SHIFT HARSHLY (LITERALLY SLAMMING INTO GEAR), THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND MY MECHANIC PULLED THE CODE P2716 INDICATING A SOLENOID/TRANSMISSION PROBLEM. THE CAR WAS OFF WARRANTY, BUT BEFORE I HAD ANY WORK DONE I CALLED BOTH THE LOCAL PONTIAC DEALER AND GM (11/4/2008-DOCUMENTED). EACH SAID THE SAME THING. THERE WAS NO KNOWN PROBLEM AND NO RECALL. SO I TOOK THE CAR TO A TRANSMISSION SPECIALIST AND PAID OVER $3200 FOR A NEW TRANSMISSION. THE CAR STILL SHIFTED HARSHLY AND THE TRANSMISSION SPECIALIST DID SOME RESEARCH AND FOUND A TOYOTA TECH BULLETIN FROM 2006 THAT DESCRIBED THE EXACT PROBLEM IN THE TOYOTA MATRIX (SISTER CAR TO THE VIBE-NUMMI PLANT). I ASKED PONTIAC ABOUT THIS AND THEY STILL DENIED THAT THERE WAS A PROBLEM. THIS WAS ALSO THE TIME OF THE ECONOMIC COLLAPSE AND GM LOOKED LIKE IT WOULD GO EXTINCT. NOW, IN SEPT. 2010, I GET THE RECALL NOTICE ADMITTING TO THE EXACT PROBLEM THAT TOYOTA DESCRIBED IN 2006. I WAS TOLD TO WAIT FOR THE SECOND LETTER BEFORE GOING TO THE DEALER TO CHECK IT OUT. THE SECOND LETTER CAME IN FEB 2011 ADVISING ME TO GO TO THE PONTIAC DEALER TO GET THE PCM CHECKED. I DID THAT BUT I ALREADY HAD THE CORRECT PCM FROM THE INITIAL FAILURE IN 2008. THE FAILURE OF THE NOW RECALLED PCM CAUSED EXTREMELY HARSH SHIFTING WHICH CAUSED TRANSMISSION DAMAGE (METAL FILINGS ETC. IN THE TRANSMISSION-DOCUMENTED) WHICH LED TO A COMPLETE TRANSMISSION REPAIR JOB COSTING ME $3275.45 AS WELL AS THE REPLACEMENT OF THE PCM. MY TRANSMISSION WAS RUINED BECAUSE OF A KNOWN FAULTY PART (PCM) THAT IS JUST NOW UNDER RECALL. THE RIGHT THING FOR PONTIAC/GM TO DO IS PAY FOR MY TRANSMISSION REPAIR CAUSED BY THEIR FAULTY PART. *TR

2005 PONTIAC VIBE. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS *TGW THE CONSUMER STATED HE EXPERIENCED TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS PRIOR TO THE RECALL BEING ISSUED. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ILLUMINATED AND THE TRANSMISSION STARTED CHANGING SPEEDS ABRUPTLY, ESPECIALLY AT LOW SPEEDS. WITHIN A COUPLE OF WEEKS, THE VEHICLE BEGAN STALLING IN TRAFFIC. THE CONSUMER WAS INFORMED THAT ONLY 863.00 WOULD BE COVERED FROM THE 2199.00 OF THE MONEY HE SPENT TO FIX THE PROBLEMS CAUSED BY A DEFECTIVE POWERTRAIN CONTROL MODULE. THE TRANSMISSION WAS INTERNALLY DAMAGED AND HAD TO BE OVERHAULED. *JB

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 PONTIAC VIBE. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER: 10V387000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING) AND THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR REPAIRS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE DEALER REPLACED THE POWER TRAIN CONTROL MODULE INSTEAD OF THE ECM AS STATED IN THE RECALL. AFTER REPAIRS, THE VEHICLE WOULD SHUTTER AND SHAKE ABNORMALLY AND OFTEN TIMES, WOULD STALL WHEN SHIFTING FROM REVERSE TO DRIVE WITH THE ILLUMINATION OF THE ENTIRE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN BACK TO THE DEALER WHERE THE CONTACT WAS ADVISED THAT THE TRANSMISSION WOULD NEED REPLACING. THE CONTACT SPOKE WITH THE MANUFACTURER AND WAS INFORMED THAT THEY COULD MAKE ONE REPAIR UNDER THE RECALL AND ANY FURTHER REPAIRS WOULD BE AT HIS EXPENSE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HE BELIEVED THAT THE INITIAL REPAIR PERFORMED ON THE VEHICLE WAS NOT THE REPAIR THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN COMPLETED UNDER THE RECALL. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 150,000. UPDATED 5/9/11 *CN UPDATED 05/16/11

2005 PONTIAC VIBE. CONSUMER STATES THAT AFTER A NEW POWERTRAIN CONTROL MODULE WAS INSTALLED PER THE RECALL, THE CAR BEGAN TO SHIFT VERY HARD AND CONSUMER STATES HEARING A HIGH PITCHED WHINING SOUND WHEN SHE ACCELERATED *TGW THE CONSUMER WAS ADVISED BY AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC THE VEHICLE WAS NOT SAFE TO DRIVE DUE TO THE DAMAGE THAT WAS CAUSED TO THE TRANSMISSION. THE CONSUMER BELIEVED THE PCM WAS INSTALLED INCORRECTLY. *JB

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 PONTIAC VIBE. THE CONTACT NOTICED THAT THE ALUMINUM RIMS WERE DEFECTIVE AND CAUSING THE TIRES TO LEAK AIR AND DEFLATE INTERMITTENTLY. THE CONTACT MADE THREE ATTEMPTS TO REPLACE THE TIRES HOWEVER, THE TIRES CONTINUED TO DEFLATE INTERMITTENTLY. THE DEALER WAS NOT AWARE OF THE PROBLEM. THE CONTACT DID NOT INFORM THE MANUFACTURER NOR WAS THE VEHICLE DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 80,000 AND THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 35,000.